Alyssa Alhadeff
She was fast on the soccer field and quick on her feet as a competitive debater. When her mother would tell her that she couldn’t go to the mall, Alyssa Alhadeff would come up with 10 reasons why she should.
“She was spunky,” Lori Alhadeff told the student newspaper, the Eagle Eye. “She just always got her way and never gave up.” Alyssa, a freshman, was promoted to the school’s varsity soccer team by the end of her first season. Her family moved to Parkland from New Jersey in 2014 and Alyssa quickly made friends. She loved the beach, boys, her smartphone and making people laugh.
Lori and Ilan Alhadeff wrote the following for the South Florida Sun Sentinel:
“It was only a week before Feb. 14, 2018 that our daughter, Alyssa, had selected her course load for her sophomore year. Honors English, Pre-Calculus, Chemistry and Spanish 4 topped her list ... quite a head, and a handful ahead of her! So difficult to imagine, though, that we now must write about our beautiful 14-year-old in the past tense.
“Not only an academic talent, Alyssa shined brightly athletically as well. She began playing soccer at age 3, and in high school held the position of attacking midfielder, wearing the number 8 with pride. Her unbelievable passing skills, coupled with her ability to communicate as a leader on the field, paved her way to athletic prowess.
“Alyssa was dedicated fully to her two younger brothers, Robbie and Coby. She even went so far as to convince her father to agree to unlimited Wi-Fi for the boys and herself ! “Alyssa’s presence in our lives will never be replaced. “The light of all of our lives was dimmed forever on Feb. 14, 2018. We will spend the rest of our time trying to #liveforAlyssa, #playforAlyssa and #shineforAlyssa.”
Donations in Alyssa’s memory can be made to MakeOurSchoolsSafe.org. The nonprofit was started by the Alhadeff family and seeks to improve school safety nationwide. On Feb. 6, Alyssa’s Law mandating silent panic alarms in New Jersey public schools was signed by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy. Spurred by her daughter’s death, Lori Alhadeff was elected to the Broward School Board last year.